Genuine or Fake Newbie

Having stayed up almost all night, it was only natural that Chen Miemie woke up around noon.

If it weren't for the glaring golden sun shining on his face, he could have slept even longer.

He sent a message to Liu Bo while eating lunch and quickly received a reply.

Time: 1:15 PM

Sender: Liu Bo

Content: Great minds think alike, huh? I was just about to look for you. See you at the Red Leaf Auction House at 2:30 PM.

"Red Leaf Auction House? Looks like I get to unlock a new piece of the map."

Before 2:00 PM, Chen Miemie went downstairs. With a snap of his fingers, he summoned his sedan chair.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a crowd gathered not far from the building.

There was Uncle Li from the fruit stand, the building manager Uncle Bie, Mrs. Jin, and a few other familiar neighbors whose names he couldn't recall.

How could he miss out on a good spectacle?

Chen Miemie also squeezed into the crowd.

"Uncle Li, what happened? What are you all looking at?" Chen Miemie realized the crowd was surrounding an empty patch of ground.

"Someone died. The body was just dragged away."

"How did they die?"

"A thick fog rolled over the street this morning. Someone saw a figure inside it, and after the fog dispersed, a person was dead. Anomalies are truly terrifying."

"That's so unfortunate."

"Sigh, the victim this time was the old fellow from the vegetable store. I told him a long time ago not to set up his goods outside the storefront, but he just wouldn't listen. Now look what happened. Packing up his stall took a few minutes longer than everyone else, and in a panic, things are bound to go wrong."

Chen Miemie had previously thought Old Li never put his fruits outside the store because he didn't want to block the sidewalk. He never expected the real reason was so he could quickly shut the door in case of danger.

The crowd lingered for a long time.

A tragedy happening right next to you hits completely differently than one you just hear about.

Chen Miemie turned and walked out of the crowd, his heart completely unperturbed.

People died every day in this world. If it wasn't someone he knew, he didn't feel much about it.

Barely two steps after getting into the sedan chair, Chen Miemie suddenly called out to stop.

The sedan chair touched down.

He asked the ground, "Road Rage, what kind of anomaly was that this morning? Has it left?"

Road Rage's reaction wasn't that fast. It took two or three seconds before it answered:

"There was no anomaly in that fog this morning. The one who killed that person was a man wearing galoshes. I didn't get a clear look at his face."

"How did he kill him?"

"Like killing a fish. A slam, a slap, and then a knife. Skinning him like removing scales, gutting him like cutting open a fish belly. Blood splattered everywhere."

"Keep an eye out and confirm if it's the boss of the seafood shop."

Chen Miemie didn't know where the Red Leaf Auction House was, but the sedan chair did. It dropped him off in a little over ten minutes.

According to this world's classifications, the building housing the Red Leaf Auction House should be considered a villa.

There was no name at the entrance, only a maple leaf pattern painted on the wall.

"Halt. Please show your invitation." Chen Miemie was stopped by security as he walked in.

"I don't have an invitation," Chen Miemie said weakly.

At this moment, his inner thoughts were incredibly active:

Here it comes. Dressed ordinarily, stopped at the door, and next should be the plotline where the other party mocks me. This classic trope is something every protagonist must experience at least once.

"He is my classmate." Mian Ruyan made her appearance.

"Miss," the men in black greeted her one after another.

Chen Miemie remained unmoved, not believing things were this simple. He even looked around Mian Ruyan.

He waited for a good while, but no one jumped out.

"Chen Miemie, what are you looking at?"

"Where are your rich young master suitors? Why hasn't anyone jumped out to cause trouble and yelled at me, 'There's no way he knows Miss Ruyan!'"

"You seem to know that the auction house is run by my family? Hardly anyone at school knows that."

"No, I didn't know, but considering you can pull off your name, I'm not surprised your family has some substance."

Mian Ruyan couldn't quite keep up with Chen Miemie's train of thought.

"Chen Miemie, huh, Mian Ruyan, how did you two bump into each other?" Liu Bo had also arrived.

"Just ran into each other at the door."

"Let's go, we can talk inside."

With Mian Ruyan leading the way, even Liu Bo didn't have to show his invitation. The three of them entered through the main doors directly.

Liu Bo had obviously dressed up today. His hairstyle and outfit were trending toward Yue Junyang's style, making him look quite a bit more mature.

After bringing them in, Mian Ruyan went to attend to her own business, while Liu Bo and Chen Miemie found a corner to sit down.

"Today is the auction day of the month. I've brought enough time with me and am determined to win one of the [Mystic Items]," Liu Bo said, beaming with excitement.

"You have a lot of time?"

"Of course, Chen Miemie. Not to scare you, but I have a massive fortune of a full 1,000 years on me today."

"Oh, that's impressive," Chen Miemie praised, though his tone was very flat.

Liu Bo wasn't very satisfied with this reaction.

"You probably don't understand the concept of 1,000 years. The entire net worth of the big shots in our Society is roughly around this amount."

When it came to Societies, Chen Miemie suddenly got interested.

"How is your [Homeward Society]? Are you doing alright in there?"

"What do you mean 'alright'? I'm doing exceptionally well. Not to make you jealous, but I have a high-level expert guiding me. It's only been a few days since graduation, and my [Mystery] has already increased to 1.1. I'm not far from 1.2 either. Even the Society President praised me as a rising star."

Chen Miemie was speechless. What was there to show off about a [Mystery] of 1.1? His was already at 2.2, and had he ever been arrogant about it?

"Is the high-level big shot guiding you your teacher?"

"How is that possible? Taking in a disciple is an incredibly serious matter. I'm still in the Society's observation period. Let me tell you, as long as I perform well, I'm confident I can successfully become an apprentice within half a year."

"Then how is your partner? Do you get along?"

Liu Bo narrowed his eyes and sneered. "You're dreaming. A newbie who knows nothing and only drags people down, who would bother with you? A partner? That's something that happens only after you get a codename."

Chen Miemie thought about it and decided not to mention his own situation, otherwise Liu Bo would definitely say he was talking big.

His silence, in Liu Bo's eyes, was seen as feeling inadequate.

Liu Bo put a hand on his shoulder and patted it in consolation:

"No rush, take it slow. Our Society is considered very good to newcomers. Since your [Silver Moon Court] is so strong, I'm afraid you'll have to endure for a bit longer."

"Huh? Is the [Silver Moon Court] very strong? Didn't they say you can't really tell the difference in strength between Societies?"

"It's true that it's hard to tell with other Societies. But every year when it comes to fighting for resources in the Society Alliance, your faction alone suppresses every other Society in the entire city. Would you say that's strong or not?"

"Oh, why do I feel like the people in my Society are just average?"

Liu Bo rolled his eyes repeatedly. "That's because you're too weak to understand. You know about Society group hunts, right?"

Chen Miemie nodded.

"Your Society is the only bunch of lunatics in Sixiang City who dare to hunt anomalies with a 5-star danger level."

"I participated in one. I think I heard it was a 5-star danger level."

Liu Bo was shocked. "Your President actually took you along for that kind of activity? How much time did you have to pay?"

"Pay time? You've got it wrong. You mean share the time, right?"

"Bullshit! For such a precious opportunity to gain knowledge and experience, they'd let you go without paying time? And you even want a share of the time? You're absolutely dreaming."

"160 years," Chen Miemie had no choice but to confess honestly.

"You really did have a bit of a stash, kid, but you must be completely cleaned out now. Don't feel bad about parting with it; the time was well spent."

Chen Miemie could only mumble in agreement to gloss over the topic.

"Enough about us. What about you guys? What kind of organization is the [Homeward Society]?"